Types of Conversions and Stay-in-Touch Programs
By: Thomas Young, CEO Intuitive Websites
Your target market’s online conversions should be the beginning of a relationship between your company and the potential customer. This can only happen if you have a strong conversion strategy and process for keeping in touch.
Web marketing content should always include a path to conversion and all conversion points should be connected to a strong stay-in-touch program. This allows a continued connection with sales leads that fall out of the sales funnel. It starts by having very strong conversion points.
Website Conversion Points
Website conversions, in their most basic form, can be defined as a direct sale via eCommerce (or another secure transaction) or the generation of a sales lead. These are the two most common forms of online conversions. Both should fall into comprehensive stay-in-touch programs, especially direct sales.
However, don’t limit conversions to only these two types. A variety of conversion points can help drive leads and sales. Here is a summary of several online conversion points:
- Direct online sale
- Telephone sale or inquiry
- Call to support or customer service
- Email inquiry
- Contact form submission
- Blog RSS subscription
- Email newsletter subscription
- Social media follow or like
- Refer-a-friend
- App download (with no purchase)
- Podcast subscription
- Webinar or seminar registration
- PDF or other download
- Security, privacy, and return policy statements
- Testimonials, case studies, and reviews
- Shipping information
- Usability of the contact us page and checkout process
Multiple conversion points help build the stay-in-touch program and better market your Website and company. One of the most important conversion points will always be the “contact us” page on your Website.
The Contact Us Page
The following conversion points should be included on your “contact us” page:
- Phone Calls – Use a unique Website phone number to track calls.
- Web Forms – Have a form that can be submitted from the Website.
- Subscribe – Email and RSS subscription fields.
- Email – Have a direct email link for visitors.
- Driving Directions – Include a map to your location.
- Fax Number – Yes, some people will still send a fax.
Content is Key to Conversions
Content marketing efforts are key to conversions and growth of stay-in-touch programs. Here are several examples of conversions driven by Web content that should funnel into a stay-in-touch marketing program:
- Email Newsletters – Collect email names and send newsletters monthly.
- Webinars – Develop a free 45-minute Webinar to present quarterly.
- Podcasting – Reach a massive audience for free on iTunes with 10 minute audio segments.
- Blogs – Keep a running journal of value-added content that informs and tells a story. Allow people to subscribe via RSS feeds.
- Website Content Updates – Develop a process of regular updates to your Website.
- Content Distribution – Send content out to Websites visited by your target market.
- Social Media – Drive content and relationships through social media Websites.
- White Papers, Articles, and PDFs – These are more detailed content sources that may require a registration to receive the free download.
The Bottom Line is Effective ROI
Stay in touch automation is a critical part of the new sales funnel and allows you to reach an unlimited amount of people and puts the prospect in charge of the sales process. These factors work together to drive ROI. Monitor the return so it aligns with revenue and profitability goals.
Technology marketing budgets are dropping fast. Marketing automation and use of technology can greatly lower marketing costs. Email newsletters and blog RSS feeds are two highly cost-effective ways to keep in touch with Web-based followers. Here are a few ROI tips that work in conjunction with your content conversion strategies and your stay-in-touch programs:
- Avoid proprietary technology or Websites.
- The CEO should understand Google Analytics as a key business indicator.
- Set-up and use Google Webmaster Tools with Google Analytics.
- Know which Web stats to really watch and which to ignore.
- Get feedback from market research and usability testing.
- Technology equals access to more markets and subscriber growth.
- Use automation and technology to maximize your content reach.
- Conduct a review of CRM tools such as SalesForce.com and Basecamp.
- Develop comprehensive marketing analytics based on the marketing funnel and conversion tracking.
Develop an action plan around getting online conversions because of great content and dropping those conversions into a strong stay-in-touch program leveraging technology to save time and money.
